Christian Dvorak has found a home in the Philadelphia Flyers top six, and now will be calling the Delaware Valley his hockey home for the foreseeable future.
As things tend to do, reports fly back and forth on X (do we still have to say formerly Twitter?), and out of the fray Anthony Di Marco had the first scoop.
Sides still talking, but it sounds like PHI and Dvorak could be closing in on a 5 year, ~$25M contract.
— Anthony Di Marco (@ADiMarco25) January 5, 2026
Still not done, but that appears to be where things are at.@DailyFaceoff
A few hours later, the Flyers confirmed the news with their own announcement that would essentially confirm the suspicions around the internet.
DONE DEAL FOR DVO. 📃✍️
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 6, 2026
We have agreed to terms with forward Christian Dvorak on a five-year contract extension worth an average annual value of $5.15M. https://t.co/0jLng32Pec
He gets 5 years at $5.15 AAV, which is quite nice for him. Of course, the season he's having is quite nice, with 25 points (9 goals and 16 assists) in 39 games, putting him on pace to shatter his previous offensive high-water marks.
He's played a lot with Trevor Zegras, which has helped boost his offensive numbers and given Zegras defensive stability so that he can be offensively oriented. After previous stops in Arizona and Montreal, Dvorak seems to be entering his prime, and willing to spend it in Philadelphia.
However the contract does come with some caveats as reported by Kevin Kurz.
Dvorak's contract extension includes a no-trade clause for the first two years, a limited no-trade clause in years 3 and 4, and no trade protection in year 5
— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzNHL) January 6, 2026
So he's here for the duration of the contract, most likely. It is a tiny raise, and a long term deal, signaling that Dvorak is set to be part of the new core going forward, and that the Flyers aren't going to be selling this season.
Typically, a rebuilding team could take a pivot more known for his defensive abilities having a career offensive year, and dangle him on the market for a premium price. Look at last year with Scott Laughton, who was not having a career year and still fetched a good prospect in Grebenken and a future first rounder. Dvorak would've yielded a higher price, undoubtedly.
Now, though, Danny Briere sends a clear message to the team, the fanbase, and the league. The Flyers management believes that they have turned a corner as a franchise and are trying to shed the identity of rebuilding and become an emerging contender.
Now, some grumbles will come from the rabble. Why Dvorak instead of Trevor Zegras, who is one of, if not the main reason, for the Flyers' resurgence? Simply, it's a question of getting a pending UFA in Dvorak signed before he can test the market while knowing that Zegras is an RFA and has less leverage.
All in all, signing Dvorak makes sense. He's excelled here; he makes the roster deeper, and the Flyers lacked centers after their purge last season. The fact that he's familiar with Rick Tocchet and seems to play really well with him at the helm gives all this a boost, and he was receptive to all of this. With both sides eager to come to the table, there was no reason not to keep Dvorak in the fold.
With this slightly too long, slightly too expensive deal, the Flyers have made a statement, and made Christian Dvorak a very happy recipient of a brand new 5-year $25.75 million deal.